The 31 Songs That Cost $675,000

BOSTON — Despite the Supreme Court's decision not to hear his appeal, a former Boston University student facing a $675,000 fine for downloading and sharing 31 songs via the online file-sharing network Kazaa has vowed to continue his fight against the group of record companies suing him.

While free downloads mean lost revenue for musicians, Joel Tenenbaum said that many recording artists had no problem with online file sharing. "Music fans love the artists," he said, adding that the lyricist for the Grateful Dead testified at his trial that "familiarity, not scarcity, creates value."

"The music business will never cease to exist in some form because it does what humans fundamentally need to do, which is share art," Tenenbaum added.

The case is currently before U.S. District Court Judge Rya Zobel, who will decide whether to impose the penalty, ask the Recording Industry Association of America whether it will accept less money from Tenenbaum or order a new trial.

The playlist

Tenenbaum faces the $675,000 penalty for illegally downloading 31 songs. You've probably heard some of them yourself. Perhaps you even own them ... one way or another. Here they are, legally and for free on Grooveshark.